A total of 18 people have been arrested by the Finnish Border Guard over suspicions of a state border violation in Imatra, the north of the border crossing point.
Through a statement, the Border Guard announced that the group that had asked for asylum consisted of men, women, and children who crossed the national border on foot, walking in the snow from Russia.
Preliminary information suggests that they are from the Middle East and have applied for asylum. The incident was revealed as a result of border guard surveillance. Southeastern Finland Border Guard continues to investigate the case.
Anywhere along the 1,340 km border between Finland and Russia, it is illegal to cross.
In order to manage the irregular migration situation, authorities in Finland decided to close all eight legal checkpoints to Russia. In January, it was decided to keep the border crossing closed until February 11, with the possibility to extend the measures once again.
As long as the measures at the border with Russia continue to remain effective, Finland will not accept applications for international protection at its eastern border.
The border crossing points on the land border between Finland and Russia will remain closed until February 11, 2024. It will not be possible to submit applications for international protection at any border crossing points on the land border between Finland and Russia.
Finnish authorities decided to close the country’s eastern border on December 14, 2023, for a month.
Following the current migration situation, The Finnish Border and European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, agreed to extend personnel and material support to the eastern border beyond the two-month support period that was set to end on January 24.
Furthermore, the support from Frontex personnel will continue until summer. Apart from personnel, the continued support involves providing patrol vehicles and technical equipment used for monitoring border areas.
Following the request sent by the Finnish Border Guard to Frontex, the current personnel support, consisting of approximately 50 permanent staff members, will be maintained at about one-third of its strength, at least until the summer.
Reintroduction of border controls at the internal borders is allowed to the EU Member States based on the Schengen Borders Code (SBC) in the event of a serious threat to public or internal security. However, it should only be used as a last option in exceptional cases and must follow the principle of proportionality.
